This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-169210, filed Jun. 6, 2000, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a film feeding apparatus for a camera, and more particularly to a film feeding apparatus for a camera having a spool device.
As prior art associated with a film feeding apparatus, there is known, for example, a film feeding apparatus disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 60-166940.
This film feeding apparatus has a spool having a relatively small diameter as a spool device, but has a disadvantage in that applying the film feeding apparatus to a camera leads to an increase in the size of the camera itself because the motor is arranged at a location different from the spool chamber.
Furthermore, in a xe2x80x9cmotor incorporated spoolxe2x80x9d disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 60-100127, a motor and a spool are coaxially arranged, and this motor is incorporated into the spool. Thus, there is a disadvantage in that the diameter of the spool is increased and a large spool chamber is required so that the size of the camera is increased despite the fact that the space is more efficiently used.
In this manner, the conventional technology of the film feeding apparatus such as a spool device having a small diameter and a motor incorporated spool is capable of improving a usage efficiency of space in the spool chamber.
However, the motor incorporated spool inevitably requires a large spool chamber space because of the structure in which the motor is incorporated into the spool chamber. Despite the fact that such a structure is one factor which increases the size of the camera itself, no specific proposal is presented with respect to the structure of the spool chamber for settling such a problem.
An object of the present invention is to provide a smaller size film feeding apparatus by arranging a spool and a motor or the like in a coaxial manner and reducing the diameter of the spool.
In order to attain the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a film feeding apparatus for a camera, the apparatus comprising:
a spool chamber;
a spool which rotates in the spool chamber for winding up a film; and
a motor arranged within an outer diameter of the spool to expose its outer periphery to the wall or walls defining the spool chamber.
Furthermore, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a film feeding apparatus for a camera, the apparatus comprising:
two spool members which mutually and coaxially rotate for winding up a film, the members being arranged in a mutually separated manner in an axial direction; and
a motor having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of each of the spool member, the motor being accommodated in a cylindrical area formed between the two spool members, the motor having an outer periphery exposed to the winding surface of the film.
Furthermore, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a film feeding apparatus for a camera, the device comprising:
a spool chamber;
a spool which rotates in the spool chamber for winding up a film; and
a column-like member which is arranged within the largest diameter of the spool for winding up a film, its surface being exposed to the outer peripheral wall of the spool chamber. invention, there is provided a film feeding apparatus or a camera, the device comprising:
a spool chamber; and
a plurality of spools rotatably arranged in a separating manner above and below the spool chamber for winding up the film.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.